If you were to write down a list of things that make Lancaster unique, you might write down the array of restaurants, the vibrant First Fridays, or Central Market as it bustles on a Saturday morning. It has a distinct feel of community. This sense of belonging is created by little things in little spaces that make each place and situation interesting. Public art especially has an important role in connecting people to the city in spaces that are already accessible.

Just by walking through Binns Park, you encounter public art in the arcs of water that children splash their way through on a hot summer day. Sitting on a bench by the train station, you can watch the Silent Symphony turn round and round, following the patterns of the wind.

From water fountains to mesmerizing sculptures, public art is expressed in a variety of ways. Yarlyn Rosario, a public art manager at the city, describes it as, “something that is made by an artist that is accessible to everyone; you usually don’t need to go through any doors or buy any tickets to experience it.” Most commonly in Lancaster, murals are painted across the sides of brick buildings: a boy stretches in the sunrise on Manor Street, and on the sides of playgrounds by Fulton Elementary you can find abstract paintings of houses. 

Currently, public art in Lancaster is taking a different shape. 

Franklin and Marshall College, the National Endowment of the Arts, and the City of Lancaster are sponsoring a 1.5 year program, called Public Art Community Engagement (PACE). PACE was created to support local artists and improve community involvement in public art projects, while also connecting the city government to the community it serves. City governments, and governments in general, often feel very detached from the needs of their community, and PACE aims to change that by bringing people together with art.

Despite these obvious benefits, it can be difficult to make public art materialize around Lancaster due to lack of funding, Rosario says. It is also hard to create art that is moving and effective when communities are unaware of the existence of public art and its many benefits. It is not a random assortment of graffiti. Not only does it help to connect a community to its government, it connects people to each other. Art can be viewed in numerous ways, and it is these differences in views that encourages discussion between civilians. 

The artists have lots of free reign to design temporary projects for communities to do together, all of which build trust and a sense of pride. Public art is “an expression of our community’s identity,” Rosario says. “I hope that public art will foster community-centered conversations around how we experience the world and treat each other.” 

The role of public art is constantly changing as people become more aware of it and its benefits. It will continue to adapt to the changing needs and values of the communities it serves, to best connect the city government to the people, and to bring out the best in each person, community, and the world.